Problem: Omar has 9 apples for every 8 watermelons. Write the ratio of apples to watermelons as a simplified fraction.
Explanation: Ratios can be written in a few different ways that mean the same thing. You can express a ratio with a colon separating the two numbers. $9:8$ You can write it out as a phrase like this. $9 \text{ to } 8$ Or, you can express a ratio as a fraction. $\dfrac{9}{8}$ Therefore, $\dfrac{9}{8}$ is the ratio of apples to watermelons written as a simplified fraction.